The instant the young man leaped from the window, the middle-aged woman seated on his other side moved. A wisp of green smoke flashed past, and though she moved later, she arrived first, landing ahead of him. When the young man landed, she even gave him a hand.
"Young Master, what is there to fight over about being the champion of the seventh arena? If that brat can hold out until the tenth arena, then Young Master can take it from him. Now that would be impressive!" The middle-aged woman coaxed him as though soothing a child.
The young man refused to accept it, violently shaking off the middle-aged woman's hand. "Granny Mao, I stopped being a child long ago! That brat is mine for the taking. If he can hold out until the tenth arena, then so can I.
"The champion of the tenth arena is far more impressive than Xiao Zhen's eighth arena."
With that, the young man strode toward the arena challenge registration desk and casually signed the life-and-death contract with a wave of his hand.
Granny Mao grew anxious. "Young Master, you may challenge the arena, but you can't sign this life-and-death contract..."
Before she could finish, Granny Mao stiffened. The wrinkled Eunuch Fu had pulled her back. A single murky look from Eunuch Fu made Granny Mao swallow the rest of her words and fall silent.
"Don't you know Young Master's temperament?" Eunuch Fu spoke in a voice like a broken chest. "Besides, it's not as though you don't know Young Master's capabilities."
"I, Yuan Hongying, have come to challenge the arena!"
At the arrogant shout, Yi Xun, the black-clad steward who had been calling out for challengers all day, immediately brightened. Regardless of the challenger's cultivation or combat strength, at least someone had finally